Comforted to be a Comforter

Hello,

I would like to take a brief moment to welcome you into a small part of my world. With all of the multitudinous responsibilities and projects that I have before me, one of the most relished times of my day is my devotion. Saturdays are especially precious because of the extended amount of time that I take. Some of you may wonder why I share my daily devotion with you. It is lucidly expressed in the few short words of the following scriptural passage. I am encouraged, comforted and empowered by God so that I may encourage, comfort and empower others. Enjoy and be blessed. Dr. Rick Wallace 

Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God (Isaiah 40:1).

Store up comfort. This was the prophet's mission. The world is full of comfortless hearts, and ere thou art sufficient for this lofty ministry, thou must be trained. And thy training is costly in the extreme; for, to render it perfect, thou too must pass through the same afflictions as are wringing countless hearts of tears and blood. Thus thy own life becomes the hospital ward where thou art taught the Divine art of comfort. Thou art wounded, that in the binding up of thy wounds by the Great Physician, thou mayest learn how to render first aid to the wounded everywhere. Dost thou wonder why thou art passing through some special sorrow? Wait till ten years are passed, and thou wilt find many others afflicted as thou art. Thou wilt tell them how thou hast suffered and hast been comforted; then as the tale is unfolded, and the anodynes applied which once thy God wrapped around thee, in the eager look and the gleam of hope that shall chase the shadow of despair across the soul, thou shalt know why thou wast afflicted, and bless God for the discipline that stored thy life with such a fund of experience and helpfulness.
--Selected

God does not comfort us to make us comfortable, but to make us comforters.
--Dr. Jowett

They tell me I must bruise
The rose's leaf,
Ere I can keep and use
Its fragrance brief.
"They tell me I must break
The skylark's heart,
Ere her cage song will make
The silence start.
They tell me love must bleed,
And friendship weep,
Ere in my deepest need
I touch that deep.
Must it be always so
With precious things?
Must they be bruised and go
With beaten wings?
Ah, yes! by crushing days,
By caging nights, by scar
Of thorn and stony ways,
These blessings are!

---

It brings me great joy and fulfillment to share all that God has shared with me. I have an erudite understanding of the struggles and pains that are associated with this ethereal journey of Christianity. I know what it feels like to be in the midst of many and yet feel as if you are all alone. I know what it means to have people smile in your face while hoping for your demise. I know what it means to long for love and have it seem so distant in the darkness. It is in those moments that God ministers to me. The Holy Spirit ministers to my spirit to confirm the things that God has already promised. I am reminded of a love so great that my God became man to reconcile me to him. 

Dr. Rick Wallace

I am reminded that there was a time on the cross in which the sins that Christ bore were my own. Although I am a Christian collectively as a part of the body, I am reminded that I am also an individual member who Christ personally redeemed on that day. So, I stopped by long enough to tell you that you are not alone. Your prayers are not unheard. Though the darkness be heavy and unrelenting, your future remains certain. Though the implacable forces of evil move against you incessantly and the vicissitudes of life shake the very core of your foundation, you are still more than a conqueror. I just wanted to remind you that not one weapon of the enemy will prosper. It is okay to smile -- it is okay to praise -- praise confounds the enemy!

No matter what you are going through at this point in your life, God has it all under control. Your prayers -- encapsulated by your faith -- has placed you directly in the midst of a move of God. My friend, God is about to show up in the midst of your moment and turn your situation around. I encourage you to hold on despite the heartache. Hold on despite the disappointment, hold on irregardless of the evidence of your demise. You shall live and not die. 

Thank you for allowing me into your life today God bless! ~ Dr. Rick Wallace 

Check out some additional resources by Dr. Rick Wallace 

1. The Invisible Father: Reversing the Curse of a Fatherless Generation - Dr. Wallace examines the destructive force of absentee fatherhood in America from a biblical Perspective

2. Renewing Your Mind: The Dynamics of Christian Transformation - Dr. Wallace discusses the power of your thought process to completely transform your life

3. Elevation through Revelation - This book was written to encourage and inspire you as you travel through life.

4. When Your House is Not a Home - Dr. Wallace engages the enigmatic issues that face marriage in America -- from a biblical perspectve.

5. The Power of Healing Affirmations -- This short book goes straight to the matter of how you word and thought affect healing in your life. (A must read)

Blogs

1. 100 Men of Purpose -- Encouraging and teaching men to rise up in their God ordained design

2. Master Fitness 21 -- This site focuses on believers living healthy lives spiritually and physically

3. Anointed Inspirations -- A little something to get your day going.

4. Christian Impact -- The revelations of God that reveal the call and ability of believers to impact the world around them.